live Rubio tells allies U.S. will hold off new Iran strikes
Secretary of State Marco Rubio told allied foreign ministers Washington will focus on sanctions and other pressure on Iran “for the time bein...
Pakistan and China are conducting a joint counterterrorism exercise, Warrior IX, to strengthen military cooperation. The drill comes at a time of renewed regional instability, with analysts saying it underscores both countries’ determination to deepen security ties.
The two-week exercise, running from 28 November to 14 December 2025, aims to enhance interoperability and reinforce military-to-military cooperation.
Speaking on AnewZ’s Daybreak programme on Friday (12 December), Osama Rizvi, founder of Rizvi Insights, discussed the strategic significance of the drills and explained why Pakistan–China security cooperation remains important.
Rizvi said the exercise takes place amid mounting security challenges in the region, noting that its timing highlights the resilience of the partnership. He said cooperation is driven by the close link between economics and security.
“Pakistan and China are collaborating on the economic front through the CPEC project (China–Pakistan Economic Corridor), and when we talk about economy and trade, security comes with it,” he said.
He added that recent terror incidents, geopolitical tensions, and Pakistan–India border skirmishes over the past two years have reinforced the need for such joint training.
Rizvi noted that Pakistan has “suffered a lot from terrorism” and “done the most in the whole world” to combat it, but isolated attacks show that further preparedness is still required.
He said joint exercises with China, which has provided military support during past skirmishes, sends a message that "rule-based order needs to be followed."
Oil prices fell after the U.S. expanded economic sanctions on Iran, as Tehran vowed to retaliate and warned it had tools to respond, raising concerns over potential disruption to regional oil supplies.
Kyiv has recently received a small number of U.S.-made Patriot interceptors capable of downing Russian ballistic missiles, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said. It comes as Britain and France pledged stronger military support for Ukraine.
Only four commodity vessels crossed the Strait of Hormuz on Sunday, following 13 transits a day earlier, as disruptions continue to restrict traffic through the key energy chokepoint.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio told allied foreign ministers Washington will focus on sanctions and other pressure on Iran “for the time being”, Axios reports. Meanwhile, Iran and Oman have resumed talks on a temporary shipping route through the Strait of Hormuz.
Russia and Ukraine have exchanged 10 prisoners of war each in Belarus, Moscow's Human Rights Commissioner, Yana Lantratova, has said.
Russia and Ukraine have exchanged 10 prisoners of war each in Belarus, Moscow's Human Rights Commissioner, Yana Lantratova, has said.
Meta Platforms has agreed to pay up to $16.68 billion and make sweeping changes to Facebook and Instagram to settle claims that its platforms put children and teenagers at risk.
At least nine people have been killed and hundreds of tourists are missing after a massive landslide triggered catastrophic flooding near Nepal’s Himalayan border with China’s Tibet region.
Instagram Chief Adam Mosseri has acknowledged that few teenagers used Instagram’s “Take a Break” feature before it became a default setting, as Meta faces a major U.S. trial over child safety.
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